


Soul of the Beast

by bitogoth



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Incredible Hulk - All Media Types
Genre: Bruce Feels, F/M, Hulkeye - Freeform, Platonic Soulmates, Protective Natasha, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Steve Needs a Hug, Tony Being Tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-08
Updated: 2015-02-08
Packaged: 2018-03-06 12:56:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3135281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bitogoth/pseuds/bitogoth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Despite all the studies of soulmarks over the centuries, there are only a few hard-and-fast rules:</p><p>Most people are born with a soulmark, or it appears when their soulmate is born. Fewer appear later in life, but it isn't unusual. Multiple soulmarks are less common, but still not strange.</p><p>Bruce had Betty's words circling his left wrist. Bruce's were over Betty's heart. They were faded, but not the silvery scars of death, just time and distance, slowly drawing them apart.</p><p>The Hulk did not have a soulmark, and no one really expected him to; after all, Bruce was the one with the marks.</p><p>Until one day he did. And Bruce didn't.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Written in Flesh and Blood

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Words on my skin, love in my heart](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1759835) by [amusewithaview](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amusewithaview/pseuds/amusewithaview). 
  * Inspired by [(You Can't Choose) What Stays and What Fades Away](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2111112) by [Taste_is_Sweet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Taste_is_Sweet/pseuds/Taste_is_Sweet). 



No one was sure when the words first appeared.

Despite cameras constantly recording Hulk's every appearance he rarely stood still (much less let anyone make a close inspection), and as soon as a fight was over, he was gone. Avenger training sessions or down-time in the "Hulk room" at the Tower were other opportunities, but no one thought to look- why would they? Bruce thought of himself and the Hulk as one (reluctantly, it's true, but that was his reasoning). Hulk did not have Betty's graceful script circling his wrist; Bruce did.

It was JARVIS who noticed a line paralleling the Hulk's ribs, up under his right arm. Tony asked Bruce for some Hulk time to do some testing (it wasn't Bruce's fault he didn't ask what the testing was for; one of Tony's favorite pastimes was giving Hulk 'unbreakable' items and putting the results on YouTube- it was a very popular channel). Hulk was in the down-time room when Tony whistled softly in amazement at the looping gray script that seemed to fade into Hulk's skin:  _Hurry! Help me- they're trapped!_

It made sense in a way- there weren't too many other opportunities for Hulk to meet someone other than an emergency. But it raised all sorts of questions and Tony had a feeling that Bruce wouldn't take it well.

***

He didn't.

Part of the problem was that Tony had all the subtlety of a Mack truck. He tried for almost three days to covertly see if Bruce had new words as well. Bruce didn't say he did, but then again, Bruce probably wouldn't. Tony knew that Bruce and Betty were estranged because of the Hulk; if he shut out his soulmate why would he let someone else in? Even if it was platonic?

For once, JARVIS was no help. Bruce had video turned off in his rooms for privacy, but everywhere else Bruce rarely did more than roll up his sleeves. There certainly weren't any new marks on his face or hands. Heck, if it came in anywhere on his back Bruce wouldn't even know. Tony first tried to talk Bruce into a swim in the pool (which he declined) and then a session in the steam-room (which Bruce also declined). He asked about hot-room yoga and Bruce gave him a flyer for a studio nearby. He even tried sidling up behind Bruce in the lab and looking down the back of his shirt, and when Bruce caught him doing it explained that his tag was sticking out.

By this point, Bruce was getting jumpy and suspicious; Tony finally broke down.

"Look, I know you think I'm acting 'weird'..."

Bruce snorted, Tony had a knack for understating his negatives. "You think?"

"Well, yeah, look, it's just, I was wondering. Uh. Your, uh. Soulmarks. Have they changed at all?"

Bruce gave Tony a long, puzzled look, eyes automatically drifting the gray letters circling his wrist. "No, Tony, why? Is something going on?"

"Oh, I don't know," Tony's attempt at being breezy and unconcerned was making Bruce even more nervous than his hovering had. "I just wonder if, you know, you might have any new ones?" Tony gave Bruce an expectant look.

Bruce took off his glasses and glared, "Tony, I swear if you know something... No, I don't have any new soulmarks. Now _what are you talking about_?"

"Can I, just, check you? Maybe? Please?" Tony would have fluttered his eyelashes if he thought it would help.

" _No!_  Not until you tell me what's going on." Bruce crossed his arms and leaned against his lab table, ready to be as stubborn as he needed to be.

Tony let out his breath in a rush and started talking very fast, "Look, I really didn't want to do it this way but I think you need to know so yeah, Hulk's got soulmarks."

"What." Bruce's voice was flat as he leaned toward Tony, fists falling to his sides.

"Yeah, here. JARVIS caught it." Tony motioned and a closeup image from the Hulk appeared, clear enough that Bruce could read the words.

"Tony, how, this, this can't be right..." Bruce started to scramble, throwing off his lab coat and lifting his shirt, searching his ribs.

"Slow down there, partner!" They methodically went over every inch of Bruce's skin (Bruce finished his examination in the bathroom, on his own). There were no new words.

Bruce shrugged his lab coat back on and polished his glasses, the two leaning against the table.

"It's really there?" Tony nodded; for once, he didn't know what to say. "Does he know?"

"What? Uh, I didn't say anything to him. Does he know what soulmarks are?"

Bruce's face was grim. "Right. Yeah. Okay. Look, I- I need to think about this. Could you- could we keep this between ourselves? For now?"

Tony nodded a little more energetically, "Sure, sure! I mean, I'm here, you know? If you need anything?"

Bruce nodded, but his mind was elsewhere. "Yeah, thanks Tony," and wandered down the hall to his rooms.

***

A couple nights later Tony and Bruce sat out on the balcony, each with a bottle of beer, watching the sun set.

"Well, of course it's platonic. Unless there's someone out there..."

Bruce shot daggers at Tony, "She's my _cousin_ , don't even go there," and took another swig of his beer.

"Yeah, right, so like I said, _platonic_. And she, or he... they? Looks feminine to me but I could be wrong. _Anyway_ , probably wasn't just born."

"I thought about that. Hulk regenerates- I don't have any new scars since..." he waved a hand. "But I'm getting older, Tony. Even the Hulk has gray hairs now."

Tony nodded, "That's my point exactly. So really, this could happen any time, right? You have to let us tell him. Or at least let the team know so they're not blindsided. _Someone_ is going to notice the words eventually; you need some spin-control in place."

Bruce rubbed his face; it was all too much. As if his life wasn't complicated enough, now  _this_? "Does PR have someone... discreet?"

Tony huffed and rolled his eyes, "Pepper has someone, I'm sure. Pepper has a contingency plan for just about anything. Did you know she already had a plan in place for the giant mutant wombats? Apparently it applies to 'giant, mutant' anything but there you go- she's prepared." Tony gave a decisive nod and finished off his beer.

Bruce slumped back. "Tony, what kind of soulmate could the Hulk possibly have?"

He fidgeted a moment. "Well, soulmates are supposed to bring out the best in us, like me and Pepper."

Bruce shifted. "Your soulmate is supposed to be your  _match_. What if this person isn't... good?"

Tony frowned; that was a legit concern and he hadn't thought of it. "We'll 'vet them of course, all the more reason for someone else to know so we can be prepared."

Bruce looked off in the distance, ashamed to meet Tony's eyes. "They might... they might not ever meet you know. Sometimes it happens."

It did happen occasionally- a soulmate dying before they meet, the words fading to scars. 

Tony gave him a sharp look, "Is that what you want?"

Bruce sighed at his beer bottle and finished it off. "Look, just tell the PR person, Pepper if you have to, but no one else yet okay? Let's just wait and see what happens."

"Okay, but..." Bruce was already walking away, and Tony just barely kept from smashing his empty bottle on the balcony floor.

***

It happened sooner than they expected.

A few weeks after Tony's discovery, the Fantastic Four were out of town when Dr. Doom made one of his periodic appearances. The Avengers responded, tearing through the army of doombots in the usual way. Things had been going rather smoothly, all things considered, until Doom released a second wave of improved 'bots they hadn't fought before. Local police and SHIELD agents were directing civilians away from the fight, but when three of the 'bots converged on Hulk he wasn't quite fast enough and was blasted away from the main fight into the side of a building. He shook it off quickly enough, but bricks rained down around him, crushing the cars in the parking lot below. Hulk flinched at the wail of car alarms and was ready to launch back into the fight when a voice cut through the din...

" _Hurry! Help me- they're trapped!_ "

Hulk's hearing was good, but there was something unusually compelling about the voice. He turned to see a woman in a brown jacket, scrambling to get into a half-buried car where a woman and small girl shrieked. The woman had clearly been hit by falling bricks; her head was bleeding and she cradled one wrist awkwardly as she tried to break in the rear window to let them out.

" _Please!"_

Hulk reached out and gently moved her away, then tapped the rear window to smash it. The woman darted around him, quickly helping them out of the wreck and directing them around the side of the building towards the nearest police cordon. At that moment one of the advanced 'bots caught up to Hulk, and he threw himself in front of her, smashing the 'bot into the ground. He turned and the woman huddled against the base of the wall on top of a pile of bricks. She blinked, dazed, then let out a yelp as Hulk scooped her up and ran down down the street, depositing her in front of the stunned officers.

She gasped, "Thank you," then smiled widely. "You did it- you saved us! Now go smash the rest of those 'bots!"

Hulk grinned in return,  _that_ he understood, but something made him linger just a moment longer. "Stay? Please?"

Her jaw dropped and she stammered, "Y-yes, I'll stay here." He nodded once, then threw himself back into the fray.

When the fight was over, Hulk ignored the Avengers and went back to the street corner, but the cordon had pulled back and she was gone. He stood there for a moment as Tony landed next to him.

"What is it, big guy? Fight's over! Time to go home and celebrate!" Hulk huffed and looked around, lost, finally shifting back to Bruce and they went to rejoin the team.


	2. Down the Rabbit-hole

Her name was Emily Ames.

She stood at the front desk of the Tower, patiently explaining that she needed to see the Hulk, or someone from the Avengers who would talk to her.

This was hardly a new situation; Tower reception saw all kinds of crazy requests on a daily basis. Usually security handled the obvious loonies, but this woman was dressed nicely and was calm, explaining that the Hulk had saved her life and the lives of two others in the events yesterday and she wanted to give her thanks. She offered a card and they assured her that they would pass the message along.

"Please, if I can't speak to someone, could I at least leave a voice message?"

Shonda's smile was getting a little strained; she'd been at this job for three months and had seen some pretty weird sh-  _things_  already, and she was worried this was turning into another one. Thankfully, there was another option.

"Let me see if Mr. Jarvis is available."

Of course, "Mister" JARVIS was always available, but the majority of the Tower's employees were in the dark about his true nature. He was a legend, however: he worked for Stark, no one had ever seen him (those who claimed they had said he dressed in expensive suits and was a perfect gentleman), and he knew  _everything_. He was the building manager and Stark's personal assistant, and if the staff ever had a problem that couldn't be resolved through the usual channels they were instructed to ask Mr. Jarvis. And he  _always_  knew what to do, sometimes _before they even asked_. Shonda pictured him in a room full of monitors, watching all the time (kinda like that guy in the _Matrix_ movies, with a bit of 60's Bond villain thrown in). It was a little eerie, and just one more remarkable thing about working for Stark.

Shonda was flustered; she'd only spoken to Mr. Jarvis once before, and that was a brief phone conversation during her orientation. She called his direct line and he answered immediately.

"Hello, Ms. Adwali, how can I help you?" She quickly outlined the situation, smothering the flutter of excitement and reminding herself to be professional. He listened patiently, then asked to speak to Ms. Ames.

A look of awe crossed Shonda's face as she held out the phone, "Mr. Jarvis will speak with you, Ms. Ames." The woman beamed and thanked her, taking the phone, and Shonda adjusted her previous judgement; Ms. Ames had to be okay if Mr. Jarvis would talk to her. They only spoke for a moment, the woman's voice low (and besides, eavesdropping isn't professional) so Shonda wasn't quite ready when Ms. Ames returned the receiver. "Thank you, Shonda, Mr. Jarvis would like to speak with you."

"Ms. Adwali, would you please escort Ms. Ames to the private elevator?"

Shonda quickly agreed and threw a significant glance over her shoulder at the other two receptionists, who had been keeping a close eye on all this. Escorts happened occasionally but they were rare, and this was another first for Shonda. Ooh, she couldn't  _wait_  to get home and tell her girlfriend! Becs will be so  _jealous!_

The doors opened as they approached and Shonda recited the little spiel she memorized during orientation, "This elevator will take you directly to the appropriate floor. Please follow the guide lights along the hallway to your designated room. Someone will meet with you shortly. Thank you, and I hope you have a pleasant stay at Stark Tower."

Ms. Ames smiled as the door closed and Shonda executed a sharp turn, returning to the desk with an extra bit of swagger in her hips. It was a  _good_ day.

***

Emily followed the directions easily enough to a lavish meeting room, replete with a cherry-wood conference table that could seat 24 (she counted) and a Manhattan view that was easily worth seven figures. She looked around, impressed despite herself when a dark man with an elaborately trimmed beard darted in behind her. For an instant she thought it might be Mr. Jarvis until the clothes sank in; he was wearing an AC/DC t-shirt with a torn collar and stained jeans. She quickly rallied.

"Mr. Stark."

He grinned and threw himself into the armchair at the head of the table and let it spin him around once, coming to rest with his elbows on the table and his attention fixed on her. "Right in one, but Mr. Stark was my dad. Call me Tony. Sit, please."

She quirked an eyebrow and sat, and he grinned again. "First test, what did you say to him?"

She thought for a moment, "Help me! Hurry! They're trapped."

"Humpf." Stark, no _Tony_ , sat back and spun around again. "Close enough, probably. Do we have footage, J?"

Emily jumped slightly as Mr. Jarvis' voice spoke over the room loudspeaker (although she couldn't see one). "Yes Sir, there was a CCTV for the Bank across the street that caught the encounter- no sound of course."

Emily's eyes widened as a holographic display appeared and she watched the events unfold in black-and-white grainy glory. Tony leaned forward, mesmerized. "And what did he say to you?"

She blinked and shrugged off her suede jacket. Underneath Emily wore a purple tank top, and turned her shoulder towards Stark. He leaned forward, eyes wide at the soulmark on her shoulder. "J?"

"The handwriting does match, Sir."

Tony blew out a long breath and for the first time looked serious, rubbing a hand over his face and looking at her closely. Emily slipped back into her jacket.

"Okay, for the record, I am all for this, but it's gonna be complicated. I think it will be good for him to have a friend. But first things first..." he tapped his phone and a new display appeared, this one with Emily's face and work ID displayed.

"What?" she stammered.

"Vetting." He scrolled through quickly, "Emily Carson Ames. 36. Degrees in English and Education. Master's in Special Ed. Teaching at," he whistled appreciatively and gave her a look, "that's a good private academy. Speciality in autism spectrum." 

He flipped through a few screens. "One ticket for running a red light five years ago; known sighting at equal rights rallies. You're not on any watch lists, donate to charities, have two cats and are allergic to peanuts. Zero debt, you're putting away for retirement but no plans to retire soon. Great reviews from your students, their parents and the board of directors. By the way, they have you slated for a bonus this year, in case you want to make plans. Married in 2010, widowed in 2012 during the attack. That's rough."

Tony looked grimly in the middle distance for a moment; clearly his memories of that day weren't so good, either.

Emily nodded, accepting his condolences; she had a feeling Tony wasn't very emotive about the serious stuff. She was kind of overwhelmed by the rest but rationalized that you could probably figure out most of that from her Facebook. Maybe.

He spun one more time, swiping the screen away in the process, and pushed a file folder across the table to her. "Our standard NDA contract." Tony fidgeted as she carefully read it through, drumming with the pen on the tabletop. She reached out a hand and he quirked an eyebrow, then the light dawned, "Oh, right," and slid the pen to her. She signed and initialed, and they sat, looking at each other for a moment.

"Okay! That was the boring stuff. Now things get  _fun_! Oh man, wait until I tell Bruce..."

"Bruce?"

"Ho, boy- you have no idea, do you? Man, I love this party trick! C'mon." He eagerly rubbed his hands together, then launched out of the chair for the conference room door; it took Emily a moment to scramble after him. "J, have him meet us at the 'wreck room' please."

"Of course, Sir."

Emily caught up to Tony as he reached the elevator. He waggled his eyebrows, "Ready to go down the rabbit-hole?"

Emily wondered, not for the first time, what the hell she was getting into.

***

They stepped onto a floor that appeared to be labs of some sort, R&D maybe? Emily didn't have much time to look around before they were in front of a serious metal door. Tony gave her a quick look, seeming to have second thoughts; he stared at the door, drumming his fingers on the arc-reactor in his chest (Emily was trying _really hard_ not to stare, but it was kind of mesmerizing). Tony suddenly gave her a gentle push to the side of the door with her back to the wall. "Stay here until I come get you- should be two, three minutes, tops." She nodded and Tony slapped his palm on a sensor next to the door and stepped in, the door sliding shut behind him.

Em let out a long breath; everything had been a blur yesterday, and today hadn't done anything to dispel that feeling yet. At the same time, there was no way she could have stayed away. She never in her wildest dreams imagined that her new soulmate could be an Avenger, much less the Hulk. But she hadn't been scared of him at all; the doom 'bots and explosions and raining bricks, yeah that hadn't been fun. But when he picked her up, she was surprised but also felt  _safe._

She'd barely slept, replaying everything, her head aching and the three neat stitches along her hairline itching. She knew what to do; she had to see him again, to  _make sure_. A small voice kept trying to convince her that she was imagining it, it was just the brick to her head, but  _Tony frickin' Stark_  just confirmed her soulmarks.

Life was stranger than fiction.

The door slid open and Tony leaned out, giving her a grin. "C'mon in, there's someone who wants to see you." Em took a deep breath and followed him in, the door sliding shut behind her.

The huge room had to be at least two stories tall. A thick, shaggy carpet covered the floor and the walls were a patterned tile that she guessed was sound-dampening. Standing in the middle of the room looking a bit confused was the Hulk. She couldn't help but grin, "Hi there!"

The Hulk squinted at her a moment and then his face lit up, "Safe!" He looked ready to jump around, but suddenly sat down heavily instead. "Why no stay?"

Em suddenly felt so happy, so  _relieved._ "I'm sorry, they took me to the hospital, I couldn't stay." She walked up, resting a hand on Hulk's enormous arm.

He stared down at the black splint on her wrist. "Hurt? Hulk hurt?"

"Not Hulk, bricks hurt." She patted his arm to reassure him and pulled up one of the sturdy metal chairs so she could sit close by. Tony hovered in a corner, watching intently. "But it's okay, a few weeks, I'll be all better. Are you okay? You don't look hurt."

Hulk seemed to struggle for a moment, "Hulk hurt, but no..." he pointed to the splint. "Hulk better."

"Good, I'm glad." She beamed and he grinned back. "I'm Emily, by the way."

He seemed to chew that over a moment. "M'ly?"

She smiled, "That's right, Emily."

"M'ly come see Hulk?"

"Yes, I wanted to thank you. And I didn't want you to think I left on purpose."

"M'ly stay?"

"I can visit for a while, but I have to go home and go to work. I'd like to come and visit you again, though, if that's okay?" She glanced at Tony, who was nodding eagerly. "Would you like me to come back?"

"M'ly come back?"

She felt her voice catch a moment, there was so much  _hope_ there, but some sadness too. She rubbed his arm and patted. "Of course I will, we're friends now, aren't we?"

"Hulk friend? M'ly Hulk friend?"

"If you want to be," but she couldn't stop grinning and Hulk laughed out loud.

"Hulk M'ly friend!" he jumped up and pounded his chest, laughing. Tony flinched, but Emily didn't seem concerned.

They talked for a while longer, Hulk showing her the room with its giant beanbag chairs, the button he could push to turn on cartoons, and some of his favorite 'toys', one of which was a twisted chrome bumper that he tried to give Emily and she convinced him to keep there so they could play with it together when she came to visit.

Tony mostly stayed in the background, watching, but finally he wandered over. "It's been about an hour..."

"This is probably a good break point, then." Emily looked tired and her headache was creeping back.

"M'ly go? M'ly come back?"

"Yes, I'm going to go home for a while, but I will come back- maybe in a few days?"

Tony nodded, "Jarvis has your contact info, he'll schedule something."

"I did want to ask one thing, where are his words?"

Tony looked surprised for a moment and then burst out laughing, "All that and  _now_ you ask?" He shook his head and walked over, tapping Hulk's side. "Hey buddy, lift your arm up, right... here."

Em reached out, her finger tracing her words. Hulk craned his neck, trying to see. "What is?"

"They're my words, the first words I ever said to you," she was feeling a little choked up, and even Tony was blinking a few times.

"M'ly words on Hulk?"

"Yes. Two people who are meant to be good friends have their words on each other."

"M'ly have Hulk words?"

She laughed, wiping away a tear. "Yes, right here," she shrugged her jacket off one shoulder and turned. Hulk leaned in, reaching out a single finger to gently touch her shoulder.

"This Hulk words?" He seemed fascinated. "Words mean Hulk and M'ly friends?"

She grinned, pulling her jacket back up. "Yes, yes they do," she said firmly.

He screwed up his face, processing this, and then asked in almost a whisper, "Bruce have M'ly words?"

She turned to Tony, confused, but he shook his head and turned to Hulk, "No he doesn't buddy, just you."

Hulk's eyes went wide and he gave an uncertain smile, then frowned and even looked a little sad, clearly mulling this fact over.

"Are you okay?" Emily wanted to be sure- something was happening here she didn't understand.

"Hulk O-K. Hulk M'ly friend. M'ly come see Hulk."

She smiled up at him. "Good, then I'll see you in a few days."

Tony walked her out and they stood silently in front of the elevator a moment.

"Kinda like one of your students, huh?"

She blinked, startled out of her thoughts. "Very much so, the universe is looking out for him," she smiled.

"Yeah, well, he deserves it. He's had a rough time of it."

"Will you be here every time?"

Tony mulled that over a moment, "For the first few visits. at least. After that- we'll see."

"I have some ideas, things he could have in the room. Who should I...?"

"Tell Jarvis. As of right now you have _carte blanche_ for anything for Hulk. Let him know and he'll get it."

"But, I..."

"Nope." Tony popped the 'p'. "I'd offer you a stipend if I thought you'd accept it but I'm pretty sure you won't, so let me do this instead."

Emily gave a dazed nod, then smiled. "You really care about him. Thank you, for doing this."

Tony shuffled, a little embarrassed, but thankfully Jarvis opened the elevator doors and saved him.

"Yeah, well, you just keep being awesome and we'll talk more, okay?"

She laughed and nodded, "Thanks again, Tony." The doors slid closed and Tony stood there, running his hands over his face and through his hair.

It had gone so well- better than he'd hoped, but something still didn't add up.

***

Emily was halfway home on the subway before she realized that she still didn't know who 'Bruce' was.


	3. Change of Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure if any of the others would make an appearance, but apparently Tony needs someone to talk to who _isn't_ Bruce, so you get a little Tony/Steve after all. Enjoy!

It was Thursday afternoon before Emily could make it back to the Tower. This time she walked straight to the private elevator, giving Shonda a friendly wave.

"Welcome back, Ms. Ames."

She jumped, "You have speakers in the elevator, too?!" Suddenly embarrassed, she apologized, "I'm sorry, Mr. Jarvis, good afternoon."

He sounded amused, "I have full access to all areas of the building that are not otherwise restricted. However, please feel free to address me as 'JARVIS'."

"Then please call me Emily," she smiled, not catching the distinction.

"As you wish, Emily." The doors opened onto the same R&D hallway and she navigated to the metal door. "Please place your hand on the sensor pad to your right." She did, and stepped into a very different room.

Tony never did anything by halves (heck, if he couldn't bump it up 1000% then it wasn't worth doing), so he'd taken her suggestions and ran with them.

The industrial lighting was replaced by UV bulbs, concealed behind a translucent picture of blue sky with white clouds. The sound-proof wall material was the same, but now painted in a landscape of rolling hills, fading to town, then to cityscape (with the Tower prominently displayed, of course), and then on to a ocean with beach, back into farmland again.

Hulk was practically dancing, "M'ly! M'ly, look!" She laughed, awed by how much had changed in just a few days.

Tony leaned casually against the wall, enjoying their reactions. "We just got here- I think he likes it. Your suggestions were good, a little modest, but good," he gave an impish grin.

"Tony, this is  _amazing..."_

"Yeah, well, I saw some pictures of your classroom, used it for a guideline. I have some ideas for the ceiling though, a digital projection so the sun moves during the day, stars at night kind of thing. Was thinking it might be nice to add to the children's ward at Mom's hospital."

Emily gave him a reverent look. "Tony, can I hug you?"

"Uh, maybe a raincheck on that?"

She grinned but didn't push it, turning her attention to Hulk who was excitedly showing her the new deliveries. There were several large rubber balls like the ones sometimes in big cat cages at the zoo; Hulk could kick and throw them with minimal damage if he was careful, and they came in several sizes and colors.

There was also a hefty wood-block table, big enough to seat eight, which made a decent desk for Hulk when he sat on the floor. At one end was a heavy roll of butcher's paper that fed under metal straps at each end of the table to hold the paper in place. Next to it was a bucket of extra-large crayons and Emily pulled up a chair as he tested them out.

The hour went quickly and Hulk started to droop. Tony stepped in, "Hey, Ems. We had a big day with that thing out in the Bronx..."

"Oh! Of course, I'm sorry, I didn't think... are you tired Hulk?"

Hulk nodded slowly, "Sleepy."

"Well, I'm going to get going then- I'll come back and see you soon, okay?"

He gave a massive yawn and nodded, "'K".

They stepped out into the hallway and she tried again, "Seriously Tony, what you did in there is wonderful. Thank you."

"Eh, I just feel bad that I didn't think of it myself. Maybe we can-"

"Tony!"

The billionaire jumped as a tall blonde with ridiculously broad shoulders strode down the hall toward them. "There you are! I wanted to go over our tactics from earlier..." He ground to a stop at the guilty look on Tony's face and the strange woman coming out of... Hulk's room?

"Steve! Hey, we're, ah, just finishing up here! How about we continue this upstairs eh?" He started guiding Emily towards the elevator and Steve crossed his arms, giving Tony the full force of his Disapproval Stare.

"Tony, what's going on?"

Emily dug in her heels and blinked, "Steve Rogers?"

Steve immediately straightened up. "That's me, ma'm. Pleased to meet you." They shook hands while Tony rolled his eyes and tried to make subtle _time to go_ gestures. Steve smirked, he wasn't sure what was up, but it was always fun watching Tony huff and fidget.

"Emily Ames, it's a honor to meet you, Captain. My students are huge fans of yours."

"Please, just call me Steve. You're a teacher?"

"Yes, I-"

" _REALLYneedtobegoingnow..._ " Tony cut in, begging Steve with his eyes to let this slide.

Steve was curious, but figured he'd get the truth out of Tony eventually. "Nice meeting you, Ms. Ames."

"Call me Emily! Hopefully we can chat another time..."

The metal door slid open and Bruce stepped out, hastily buttoning up his shirt.

"Tony, _what the HELL?"_

***

Tony clapped a hand over his face and took a deep breath. "Okay, Steve? We'll talk later. Yes I'll tell you, but I have to talk to Bruce first."

He pointed at Emily, "Emily, Bruce. Bruce, Emily." She gave an uncertain wave, but he was already turning to Bruce.

"Can we take this inside? I can explain, really, I can!"

Steve frowned and exchanged a bemused shrug with Emily. "Okay Tony, but as soon as you work this...whatever...out, let me know." Tony nodded and waved him off, still focused on Bruce. Steve turned back down the hallway, wanting to give his teammates the privacy it appeared they needed, but throwing a worried look over his shoulder before he stepped into the elevator.

Bruce was breathing heavily and looked  _furious_. He also looked exhausted. "What did you do in there? Is this why you dragged me out of the Tower all day yesterday? You're supposed to ask me about these things!"

Em watched the back-and-forth, like an especially confusing tennis match.

"Emily," Tony reached out and partially held her in front of him like a human shield, "is a teacher. She works with autistic kids. I had her look at the room and she made some suggestions..."

"You let a  _stranger_ in? Tony, what were you thinking?!"

Tony straightened up. "She's been vetted! Paperwork and everything. When you see the footage you'll understand..."

"The Hulk saw this? Tony..." Bruce groaned and looked ready to start pulling out handfuls of hair; Emily had the feeling this wasn't the fist time they'd had this kind of argument. Tony took a deep breath to rebut but Emily came to the rescue.

"Is it really so bad? If you saw what that room was like before then you know that it was almost as bare as a prison cell..."

"It _IS_ a cell," Bruce ground out. "It's for _containment_ , so no one _gets hurt_!"

Emily sucked in a breath. "You can't treat him like an animal!"

"Of _course_ I can, he _is_ an animal! He's a monster!" Emily's jaw dropped, then snapped closed with an audible 'click' and her nostrils flared. Tony had gone gray, completely at a loss as to what to do. Somewhere in his memories a scene like this lurked and he struggled to push it aside.

Emily stepped up and just barely resisted poking Bruce in the chest. "He is a  _person_ and a  _hero_ and he deserves to be treated better!"

Realization dawned on Bruce and he took a half-step back, looking at Tony. "She's his soulmate, isn't she?" But Emily wasn't backing down.

"Yes I am, and  _how dare_ you yell at Tony for trying to make his life a little bit better?"

Bruce's full ire was now on her, "You don't know  _anything_ about what's going on here!"

"Then  _tell_ me! I'm not going away, Bruce whoever-you-are. He has a  _soulmate_ , he has a  _soul_ , and you better get used to that because it isn't going to change."

Somewhere a switch flipped, and Bruce was suddenly coldly quiet. "Don't you _ever_ say anything to me about soulmates. Soulmates _leave._  Soulmates _die._ You don't know what it's like, so don't even talk to me."

Emily lifted her chin defiantly, rolled up her right sleeve and thrust her arm toward Bruce. He stared at the silvery scars tracing the inside of her arm. 

"My husband. We met late and married later. We thought we had all the time in the world. We didn't." She yanked down her sleeve, tightly controlled anger twisting her features and under it a deep pain that Bruce recognized all too well.

"I don't know who you think you are, but he deserves someone who cares about him just as much as anyone! You may not  _like_  him, but he has a soul. If you're some kind of _handler,"_ she spat the word, "then you have to decide if you can sleep at night denying him that."

She turned abruptly, striding for the elevator, but not before Bruce saw tears in her eyes. What Emily had with the Hulk was platonic, but it was still a soul-bond; if he purposely kept them apart then he would hurt them both. There were even laws to protect soulmates who were deliberately separated, at least in most Western countries. Bruce's biggest fear was that the Hulk would hurt someone, and here he was, willing to cause someone else pain, just because he was... jealous.

He was jealous.

That the Hulk had a soulmate, while Bruce had to let his go, because of the Hulk.

As suddenly as it appeared all the venom drained out of Bruce and his shoulders slumped, resigned. He was so tired. Tired of fighting. Tired of doing this on his own. She was right, he shouldn't have yelled at Tony; he was just trying to help. 

"Stay? Please?"

Emily froze, then slowly turned and looked at him.

"You're right. I just... I need some time. To get... to get used to this. Idea. It's new." He rubbed his eyes and resettled his glasses, leaning heavily against the wall. "There is a lot, a _whole_ lot, that you don't know."

Some of the defensiveness drained from Emily's shoulders and she wiped under her eyes while Bruce looked away, giving her a moment to compose herself.

"Yes, well, this wasn't exactly what I expected when my second marks showed up, either." She sighed. "Maybe we can start this over." She took a deep breath and held out a hand, "My name is Emily Ames, and Hulk is my platonic soulmate."

Bruce nodded slowly. "Bruce Banner, I- work, with the Hulk." They tentatively shook hands. A thought bubbled up, and Bruce found himself speaking before he really thought it through, "You didn't have to come. Once you knew what... who he is."

She shrugged a shoulder, leaning against the other wall. "Once I knew, I couldn't stay away. He's really remarkable, you know. Tony records the playtime sessions?"

Bruce looked confused a moment, "Oh, yes. Anytime Hulk is in the, uh, 'wreck' room."

She gently kicked a heel against the wall as she stared at the floor. "Will you watch the footage?"

He let out a deep sigh, "Of course. I just... Tony tends to spring these things on me."

"Yeah, I'm starting to understand that." She gave a wry grin that Bruce found himself returning.

"You have _no_ idea." They both chuckled, and Bruce straightened up. "Listen. Thank you, for giving me,  _him_ , a chance."

Emily looked at him strangely, then nodded. "I'm scheduled to visit this time every week. Maybe I can come early and we can talk a bit first, maybe at the coffeeshop downstairs?"

Bruce nodded, "I'd- I'd like that. Unless we're out on a mission; you can always check with JARVIS."

She smiled, a little more confident now. "That sounds good. See you next week." 

Bruce gave a wave as she left, then slumped back against the wall, face cradled in his hands. He was exhausted and emotionally drained. He'd have to let Tony know he was forgiven, or at least was being allowed to get away with it. He looked up; where was Tony, anyway?

***

Tony paced in the lab, fingers nervously drumming on the worktable, on the arc reactor, on DUM-E.

"Sir, I have taken the liberty of letting Captain Rogers know that you are available."

"What?!" Tony squawked, "I'm not ready to talk to him..."

"Well too bad, I'm already here." Tony rolled his eyes and flopped his head over his shoulder, looking at the mountain of flannel lurking behind him.

Tony waggled a finger at the ceiling and muttered, " _...sneaky..._ ". "I don't need your snark right now, Rogers."

"I know, you have plenty of your own," Steve replied with a grin. Tony sighed dramatically but couldn't help grinning back. "So, spill, what was that all about, anyway?"

"Yeah, _that_." Tony rubbed a hand over his face. "Well, as leader of the Avengers you should know, but I want to keep it in the family, so to speak. No running and telling SHIELD, they can figure it out on their own. Maybe." He snorted.

Steve crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe while Tony fidgeted with a circuit board. "Some time this year, Stark?"

"So, Hulk has a platonic soulmate. You just met her."

Steve's jaw dropped a foot and Tony gloated- he'd been waiting to drop this bombshell for weeks know; it was amazing he'd held out this long. Tony gave himself a mental pat on the back for his towering self-control.

"He...  _really?_ That's wonderful!"

"I  _know_ , right? But Bruce was all, 'No no no, don't tell anyone... maybe they won't meet', and  _I_ said..."

But Steve was staring at him, aghast. "Tony, are you saying it's Hulk only? Not Bruce, too?"

"Yes. Well, no. Sort of. It's complicated..."

Steve was already working it through on his own, "I guess it makes sense; Hulk never had Betty's words show up."

"Yeah, well, there's more. But they haven't worked it out yet. It might not happen, but something's screwy." He frowned, pinching his lower lip as he thought.

Steve narrowed his eyes, "Tony, if you suspect something I need to know." He was slipping dangerously close to his 'Captain' voice.

Tony looked at him, eyebrows raised and lip still pinched, then left go and shook his head. "Sorry Steve-o, I think I need to hold out on you this time. Nothing might come of it, and even if it does it's soulmate territory; not really something the Avengers can do much about. But I promise you'll be the next to know, 'kay?"

Steve leaned back against the doorframe; he had his own troubled history with soulmarks and had to resist touching the scars that were all that was left of Bucky's words. "Okay, I'm trusting you with this one. Just, go easy on Bruce, okay? Should I say something?"

"I don't know, now that the cat's out of the bag it might be okay. I'll ask him what he wants but don't be surprised if he's touchy. By the way, you should check out the new-and-improved Hulk room; it's not too bad, even if I do say so myself." Tony rocked back on his heels, hands jammed in his pockets, completely unashamed of himself. "Aw heck, c'mon, I'll show you now!"


	4. A River in Egypt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the angst!

A week later, Bruce stood in the coffeeshop, slightly overwhelmed by the range of options, when a light touch signaled he wasn't alone. He turned and gave Emily an uncertain smile, "Hi, my treat?"

Emily returned the smile, "Sounds good. What are you having?"

"I was thinking about one of the fruit teas, but there's so many flavors..."

"If you like pineapple the pineapple green tea is good, I've had that before."

"Thanks, I'll give it a try." They placed orders and settled at a tiny table; Emily had a cranberry-orange scone to go with her chai, while Bruce settled on blueberry.

"So," Emily began after a sip of tea, "this is pretty awkward."

"Ha, yeah." Bruce took a sip and looked up in surprise. "This is good!"

She smiled, relaxing a little and daintily broke off a corner of her scone. "I'm glad you like it."

"I was thinking about this, and, it's a bit like shared custody, maybe? I've never been in that situation, but..."

Emily chuckled, "Me neither, but it does sound similar, doesn't it?" She took a bite and chewed thoughtfully, then continued. "If it's still okay, I'd like to stay on this schedule. I hope you don't mind, but I brought some studies for you to look at. I don't think he's actually autistic, developmentally challenged maybe, but some stability in his life might be good and a set schedule reinforces that."

Bruce gave a slow nod and stared into his cup a moment. "Emily, I want to apologize for how I was... before." She started to wave him off but he pushed on through, "I always thought of Hulk as nothing but anger and destruction. Now, it seems he's something, some _one_ , else. I still don't know what to do with that, but...," he took a gulp of tea and almost choked, then composed himself. "But you've seen, he _can_ do good things. And maybe, maybe that's why he has a soulmate, to give him that chance, to be better."

There was silence and Emily opened her mouth, then her brows drew down and she turned away, looking out over the lobby for a long moment. She looked at Bruce, something a little sad in her eyes, but smiled softly. "I was relieved, you know."

Bruce blinked; that wasn't a response he'd expected.

"Tom and I, my husband, he was everything to me. But we didn't meet until we were already in our 30's, and we only had a few years together. He died in the Chitauri attack- he's been gone as long as we were married. When the new words appeared, I wasn't ready to... to let someone else in. But, this... that it turned out to be platonic, someone who can use my help, I can work with that."

Bruce washed down a bite of scone with his tea and frowned. "Why wouldn't you think it was platonic?"

Emily took another bite of her own, then wiped the crumbs away with a napkin. "Because my marks came in black."

Bruce slowly put down his teacup, eyes widening. "What?" It was almost a whisper.

"Bruce, are you alright? You look pale..."

"I'll be right back, just, give me a minute, okay?"

"Bruce?" Emily turned and watched him walk, faster and faster until he burst into a sprint toward the private elevator. The doors opened, then closed, concealing him inside.

***

"JARVIS- don't go anywhere. Stop recording."

"As you wish, Doctor Banner, but are you well?"

"Yes, no, just, scan me please? Visually? Is there any new writing on me?"

Bruce was quickly stripping out of his clothes, his shirt already thrown to the floor and he was removing his belt when JARVIS spoke, "Sir, there is writing on your lower back."

Bruce staggered against the wall, it felt like all the air had been sucked out of room. He stared into the eyes of his shocked reflection for a moment, then turned, using the brass interior as a mirror. If he craned his head over his shoulder, he could just see the words.

"What do they say, JARVIS?"

" _Yes, well, this wasn't exactly what I expected when my second marks showed up, either._ "

Bruce let out a breath that might have been a sob. He knew it wasn't, but he had to ask.

"Is it the same? The same writing?"

JARVIS replied gravely, "No, sir, it is not."

Bruce stood there a moment, then numbly began to dress again. "My floor, please, JARVIS."

The elevator began to move. "But, Dr. Banner, what about Ms. Ames?"

Bruce gave a shaky laugh and lowered his face into his hands, then raked his fingers through his hair.  _What about her, indeed_? 

"Please let her know that I apologize but I'm not feeling well. She can meet with Hulk at the regular time today. Let her know the schedule is good, and that you'll notify her if I'm, _he,_ is ever unavailable during the regular meeting time so she can reschedule."

"Of course, sir."

The rest of the ride was silent, as Bruce stared down at the faded words curving around his wrist, and thought about the fresh, deeply black lines inscribed on his back.

***

The next few weeks Bruce wasn't there when Emily came to visit. In fact, Bruce did a good job of not being around at all. He was reclusive at the best of times, but everyone was concerned about how withdrawn he'd become, eating alone and rarely leaving his rooms or the lab.

Tony finally managed to pin him in the lab one night and hovered between Bruce and the door, pretending nonchalance. Bruce did his best to ignore the endless stream of babble and fidgeting, but he finally couldn't stand it any more.

"Tony, just say it."

He froze for a moment, then huffed. "When are you going to talk to her?"

"I'm not planning to."

Tony threw his arms out, nearly flinging the screwdriver he'd been fiddling with across the room. "WHY NOT? I know you think you lost Betty because of the Hulk, but here's someone who's not only okay with the Hulk, but good with him! Why not see what happens?"

Bruce hunched over his workstation. "I drove her away."

"Yeah, you almost did, but then you relented. Coffee was going pretty good before you freaked out, right?!"

Bruce slowly turned and gave Tony a long look. "I drove _Betty_ away, Tony, on _purpose_ , to  _protect_  her. But you won't _let me_ protect Emily from the Hulk. So, when were you going to tell me that Emily's soulmarks are _black_?"

Tony blinked, but for once didn't shift into full-on deflection mode. "From her first visit. Not just that it was black, but it was your handwriting."

Bruce froze, eyes wide, then let out a long sigh, head falling forward. "You don't get it, do you Tony? You know that not all soulmates work out. I can't... it's not going to work. He's always  _here_ ," he stabbed at his forehead. "I'm almost never free of him, always lurking the background, waiting to slip out. Do you have any how  _hard_ that is? In a romantic relationship? I don't know but I bet Emily isn't too keen on a  _threeway_." He almost spat out the last words.

Tony gaped a moment. "Wait. Wait right here. I'll be right back, I promise," and he skittered out of the lab and ducked into the Hulk room.

Bruce sighed, wondering what on earth was next. 

Tony hurried back, a half-dozen sheets of paper clutched to his chest. "You haven't even looked at these, have you? You should, you know." He pushed Bruce's experiment aside and spread them out. Bruce lunged to keep beakers from falling to the floor, then slowed as the colorful scribbles sank in.

The first was mostly blue with a shaky circle. Someone, probably Emily, had drawn a star in the middle and Hulk had colored it red. "Is this... Tony, did _Hulk_ draw this?"

"Yeah, yeah he did." It could have been done by any three-year old. Tony closely watched his friend's face as Bruce flipped to the next drawing. "We could probably auction them for a fundraiser if he'd part with any."

The next was thick black lines with a red splotch, until he turned it slightly and the colors clicked. "Natasha."

A small figure on top of a rectangle with short purple lines slashing down. "Clint?" He looked up for confirmation and Tony nodded. Bruce let out a breath of a laugh.

The next was red and yellow. "You, of course." He smirked a little, but Tony's smile was forced. He was waiting.

The next drawing took up most of the page. A person in a purple shirt and brown pants stood against a green hill. "Is that, is that _me_?" Tony nodded, afraid to speak. Bruce took another look at the background and the page began to tremble in his hand. "It's  _him_. I'm _in_ him."

"Yeah, I think you are." Tony rested a hand on Bruce's shoulder but he shook it off, taking off his glasses and angrily wiping his eyes.

"What the hell, Tony? What does any of this _mean_?"

"I think it means that you're only hurting yourself. And maybe Emily."

"She doesn't even know!"

"I  _know_ you watch the recordings, Bruce. She's good for him, and she'd be good for you, too. Seriously, you're my best friend, I want you to be happy."

"She doesn't want me."

"How can she when she doesn't even know?!"

"No." Bruce was looking away, arms wrapped around himself like he was cold. "She said so. She was glad it was only platonic. She's not over her soulmate who died."

Tony hesitated, then took the plunge. "The way you're not over Betty?" Bruce flinched, but didn't reply. "Maybe it's time you both moved on."

"I pushed Betty away, Tony. Why do I deserve a second chance?" Bruce quickly left the lab while Tony stood there, silent.


	5. It's a Big Job

Emily wondered what happened to Bruce, but Jarvis assured her he was now well, just busy. Between her regular class and visiting Hulk Emily herself was busier (and happier) than she'd been in months, but something still felt off, somehow.

After their first few sessions, Tony no longer watched them like a hawk and Emily found she missed his eccentric brand of humor. It took some sly conversational gambits on her part to finally figure out that yes, Tony was worried about her safety, but he also wanted to make sure that she wasn't going to exploit Hulk and sell him out to the tabloids. She tried not to be offended- it was a reasonable concern and Emily's impression was that Tony had some trust issues of his own, so she settled on being flattered that he felt she was trustworthy.

Steve stopped by and they finally had a chance to talk without Tony interrupting. He wasn't sure of his welcome at first, but Hulk was delighted to have more visitors and he and Steve would play a modified version of dodgeball with the oversized bouncing balls, Emily watching behind a thick wall of safety plastic. Hulk was also fascinated by Steve's sketches and Emily impressed by his skill; she prompted Steve to start half a picture and let Hulk finish it and they both enjoyed those sessions immensely. Emily had a feeling that Steve was a bit lonely, and their socialization time gave him a chance to bond with Hulk.

Even though Emily was kept away from the 'official' side of the Avengers, Steve still shared a few tidbits with her.

"I really think he's improving; he's more vocal and on the last mission we had less collateral damage."

"Hulk smash flying things, not cars," he agreed. Steve clapped him on the back and grinned as Hulk added to their newest masterpiece.

The door slid open and a cheerful voice said, "Hey! Why wasn't I invited to the party?"

Hulk threw out his arms, crayons scattering, "Clint!"

The archer swaggered in with a stack of pizza boxes over his shoulder and they quickly cleared the drawing table. "Just one first, okay buddy?" Hulk had already folded half a pizza and taken a big bite, humming happily.

Clint stuck out a hand and Emily shook it warmly, "Nice to meet ya, Steve and Tony say good things about you, wanted to see for myself." He looked around the room and grinned, "Tony did the sky thing, didn't he?"

Em laughed, "You got it. Nice to meet you, too."

Hulk added around the other half of the pizza, "Clint shoot flying things, make smash!"

Clint grinned and vaulted up onto Hulk's shoulder where he sat eating his own pizza slice, "Yeah, we make a good team!"

Emily was distracted by something he'd said, however, "The rest of the team knows about me?"

Steve looked a bit embarrassed and rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, I hope you don't mind. Tony was secretive so, you know, spies."

"I see," Emily chuckled and Clint gave a 'What can you do?' shrug and grinned back.

"We did agree to introduce ourselves one at a time, make sure it was okay with you and with Hulk," Steve hurried to add.

"I'm flattered, and I think Hulk likes the company."

"You should be, he won't stop talking about you," Clint volunteered as he snuck a slice from Hulk's second pizza and got a half-hearted 'huff' of resignation in return.

Emily picked up a slice of her own, "Is that going to be a problem?"

"No," Steve sounded confident, "Hulk doesn't talk much outside the immediate team, so it should be fine."

Once the pizzas were done Clint and Hulk put on a show of some of their favorite tricks. The ceiling was just high enough that Clint could do a handstand on Hulk's palm and then flip a dismount to the floor. Hulk showed off his toys and Clint practically had to be dragged away from the crayons. He finally gathered up the empty boxes and showed himself out.

"Stop by any time," Em offered.

"I would, but there's a _schedule_..." Emily cocked an eyebrow at Steve who managed to look abashed again.

She couldn't help but laugh, "Maybe you'll share this schedule with me so I'll know who to expect?"

"Oh! Of course, I'll do that." Steve paused a moment, "To be honest, Tony asked that if he wasn't here..."

"That someone else would be. I suspected as much- it's okay Steve. I like that you look out for each other. Besides, how often do I get to hob-nob with super heroes? Even if I can't tell anyone about it?"

Steve blinked, "What _do_ you tell people?"

She huffed a laugh and spread out a fresh expanse of paper for Hulk to draw on. "I told them I'm doing private tutoring, but teachers are terrible gossips; they think I'm seeing someone."

Steve scuffed a toe in the carpet where he sat on the edge of the desk, watching Hulk draw. "Is it hard? I mean, not talking about your soulmate?"

Emily gave him a knowing look. Steve glanced up and blushed when she caught his eye.

"Of course, but I think you know that."

Steve fidgeted a moment and then asked softly, "Does it get easier? Losing them?"

Emily gave a long sigh and leaned against Hulk, resting the back of her head against his huge shoulder; he huffed happily at the contact. 

"Yes, and no. I feel like a part of me is missing, all the time, but it's more of an emptiness now, than a sharp pain. Spending time with Hulk helps, but... I still feel like something is missing from my life. I'm not sure that will ever go away."

She moved over and sat in a chair near Steve. "After the attack... I did a lot of reading, about people who've lost a soulmate; how it's the same or different as losing anyone you care about. Lots of anecdotal stories, a few case studies. Everyone handles it differently. Like any kind of grief, everyone processes in their own way."

Steve shifted a bit, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry."

She reached out and squeezed his shoulder. He sat stiffly for a moment, then leaned into it. "You don't have anyone to talk about this with, do you?"

He gave a one-shouldered shrug and looked everywhere but at her. "Shrinks. But that's... I'm not comfortable with that,:

Em snorted, "I went through that, too. I can tell you everything mine said for a whole lot less an hour."

Steve gave an uncertain smile. Emily smiled back, then looked away. "I was lonely, you know. I love my students but Tom and I, we were a world unto ourselves. I have friends, but not really close ones." She smiled at Hulk digging through the bucket looking for another purple crayon. "What I'm saying, Steve, is if you ever need to talk, you don't have to wait for me to come to the Tower."

"I, really?" She looked at him in surprise as his grin widened. "You don't mind?"

She couldn't help but laugh. "All you had to do was ask; I think I've already decided to adopt Clint, too."

Steve stood up, shuffling his feet a moment so Emily stood and open her arms for a hug. Steve returned it, then hurriedly wiped away a tear. "Would I be making this awkward if I said you remind me a little of my mom?"

Emily really laughed this time, and Hulk turned to see what it was about. "Sure, just don't call me that," she chuckled. "How about 'aunt' instead?"

Steve had a mischievous look, "Auntie Em?"

Now Emily looked surprised and laughed in realization, "Okay, maybe not _that_." They both laughed. "So, who's next on the list?" _  
_

"Well, Thor should be back next week, and he loves to visit Hulk. Sometimes they wrestle, not here," he explained hurriedly, "we have a training area outside the city. But it's pretty impressive."

Em blinked in thought a moment, "Okay. Next week, alien. Got it." She brushed something off her pants leg as she asked, "Is Bruce on the list?" then glanced up.

Steve looked uncomfortable, "Ah, no, probably not." Em frowned and looked away.

"Is it because of Hulk or me?" Steve shifted awkwardly, but his face was carefully neutral. She sighed, "It's okay, I really shouldn't have asked..."

"Bruce sad." They both jumped and Steve's jaw dropped.

"He's... sad?" They exchanged a look but Hulk was still intent on his coloring. Steve shook his head; he didn't know what was going on, either.

"I guess that's why he hasn't talked to me since the coffee shop. I thought I'd offended him somehow; we didn't get off on the best foot." Something she said drew Hulk's attention and he turned to her.

"Bruce no talk M'ly?"

"Well, we talked a little, but it was a few weeks ago; I haven't seen him since."

Hulk frowned. "M'ly want talk Bruce?"

"I..." she floundered a moment, "not if he doesn't want to talk to me."

"Bruce make M'ly sad?" She flailed for a moment, trying to figure out where this was going.

"Maybe a little, but I understand if he's avoiding me..." she was blushing and wasn't sure why. "It's okay Hulk, I don't want to bother him if he's sad..." but Hulk was clearly thinking something through and huffed to himself.

"Bruce think M'ly no like..." he made a gesture with his hands, clearly at the edge of his vocabulary.

"I like Bruce, I just don't know him very well. But that's okay..."

"No," he said firmly. "Bruce talk M'ly, now," and stood up.

Steve scrambled toward him, "No! No Hulk, it's okay, really! Look, I'll talk to Bruce..." but it was too late.

Emily blinked in confusion; she stood up but felt as if the room was still shifting, then realized that  _Hulk_ was shifting, shrinking before her eyes. The green of his skin leeched away and Em gasped as his features revealed Bruce, who staggered as Steve reached out to steady him. He shook his head groggily, one hand holding up Hulk's pants, then looked up, green eyes now brown.

"Emily?"

She turned and fled.


	6. Part of the Family

To her credit, Emily didn't go far. In the hallway she quickly stuttered to a halt, gasping in disbelief, pushing hair away from her face with both hands as she tried to process what she'd just seen.

Things were starting to fall into place, but it was so hard to believe... the door slid open and Steve skidded out, then sighed in relief that she was still there.

"I'm so, _so_ sorry. We wanted to tell you but," he waved toward the room, "it's complicated."

"You _think?_ " Em leaned against the wall and rubbed her face. "I mean, I understand, I think, but it's..." her hands fluttered as she tried to put it in words.

The door opened a second time and Bruce stepped into the hallway, still pulling on a t-shirt. He was barefoot and held onto the hem with both hands, looking both relieved and apprehensive that she was still there.

"Emily," his voice was a little hoarse, and he cleared it. "Can we talk?"

She nodded slowly and Steve took a step forward, but Bruce gave a small shake of his head. Em followed back into the Hulk room where Bruce looked around a moment, shook his head and said, "Maybe not here." He continued to another door Emily hadn't been through before that opened into a spartan apartment with a skyline view. Bruce waved towards a chair and muttered a brief apology as he stepped into another room; a minute later he came back out wearing jeans and loafers, and threw a button-down on over his t-shirt.

"Tea?" She nodded silently, following him with her eyes has he heated water in two mugs in the microwave, then added tea bags. He carefully handed her one and sank into the other chair.

"You look exhausted." Bruce blinked at her and nodded; it was as good a place to start as any.

"It takes a lot out of me, us, when we... change _."_

"Does it... hurt?" Bruce flinched; it was one of the questions he tried to sidestep whenever possible.

"It's... not comfortable. I, we, heal quickly." Bruce's lips twisted in frustration.

Em put aside her mug; her hands were shaking and she was afraid she would spill it. "Can you... are you allowed to tell me how?"

Bruce sighed into his mug and took a sip without tasting it. "It's not a good story. I... volunteered. But... it didn't work work the way we hoped. It was a long time ago." He glanced at her wide eyes and quickly looked away, afraid to see pity and instead seeing something like understanding, which was somehow worse.

Em let out a deep sigh and Bruce watched her from the corner of his eye; she seemed to age in front of him. "We don't really know each other; you have no reason to trust me, and probably plenty of reasons why you shouldn't." She shifted uncomfortably, looking out the window. She seemed about to say something, but each time paused, finally taking another track. "My instinct is to try to help, but you're not one of my students. If you've lived with this for... years?" He nodded in silent confirmation. "Then I doubt there is much that I can suggest that you haven't tried, even if you're willing to accept my help."

She leaned forward and looked earnestly at Bruce. "Even if you don't want me... to help, I still want to be here, for Hulk. I agreed to protect him, and as far as I'm concerned that applies to you as well, now. But I hope... I hope we can be friends." 

Bruce looked closely at Em. Even though he had watched hours of footage of her with Hulk, this was really only the third time they'd had a conversation. Auburn hair fell around her shoulders and her direct gaze was intense, eyes a grey-blue. She wore no makeup and he realized that a faint dusting of freckles crossed her cheeks and nose. Her hands were clasped, elbows resting on her knees, and her long fingers had blunt, unpolished nails. There was something practical and matter-of-fact about her; she wasn't a classical beauty like Betty was, although she wasn't unattractive, but Bruce couldn't shake the feeling that she saw much more than he wanted her to.

At the same time, however... he was relieved. That she wouldn't abandon him. Them. The Hulk. He looked away, gave an internal sigh and set down his mug that was already going cold.

"Not many people know. It's... a relief, not to have to hide it. From you. Thank you, for staying."

Em gave him a tentative smile. There was clearly more that she wanted to say, but she stood and gathered her bag. "Thank you, for talking to me. For letting me stay. Do you... should we try the coffeeshop again?" She looked uncertain. Bruce stood as well.

"I'd like that. I promise, no running away this time." Bruce smiled, he felt as if a weight had been lifted somehow, and Em's smile relaxed as well, warming her eyes. Her hands clutched at her bag strap for a moment, then she nodded.

"See you next week, then." Bruce nodded and walked her to the door. As it closed behind her Bruce let out a long sigh and rested his forehead against the doorframe. It wasn't the way he'd wanted her to find out; if he could have kept it from her indefinitely, he probably would have. But now that she knew... it was okay. It really was okay.

But he hadn't said anything about the soulmarks.

***

Steve was waiting anxiously by the elevator as Em stepped into the hallway. She'd never actually seen anyone wring their hands in distress before, but that was clearly what the super-soldier was doing; it was endearing, really.

"Are you... is it okay? Did you talk?"

"Yes, it's okay. We worked it out." She couldn't help but smile, it was easy to forget that in actual years lived he was ten years younger than she was.

Steve ran both hands through his hair and gave a huge sigh, "Oh thank _god_ ," and surprised Em by folding her into an enormous hug, then quickly backed off in embarrassment. They stepped into the elevator together as Steve explained, "We have to be so careful, and it's hard for Bruce to let anyone in. We wanted to tell you..."

"It's okay Steve, it really is. I can understand why you're all so protective of Bruce, now. I promise to be worthy of your trust."

He blinked, "You are, I'm sure of it. I'm just glad that you're staying." He gave a lopsided grin.

Emily bit her lip and smiled in return; it broke her heart the way they all assumed that she'd leave. "I'll be back next week, and Bruce and I will talk more." Steve gave a dazzling smile.

"That's great, JARVIS already let Tony know, and I'll notify the rest of the team. Thanks for sticking with us, Em." She resisted the urge to pat him on the cheek- he was really adorable.

"Thanks, Steve. I'll talk to you soon." She stepped off the elevator and he gave a wave before riding back up. Em sighed, she was emotionally wrung out and decided to treat herself to a cab rather than deal with the subway. There already was a taxi at the stand and she sank into the back seat gratefully. She thought her life was complicated _before_...

***

Em stepped onto the curb and fished for her keys. The brownstone was her one luxury; she lived in walking-distance to the school and enjoyed hosting the faculty holiday party every year. She carefully locked the door behind her and disabled the alarm, then dropped her bag and jacket on the hall table; she'd deal with that later. Kicking off her shoes she walked down the hall to the kitchen only to freeze in shock- someone was sitting at her kitchen table.

The redhead gave her a cool look and Em realized who it must be; she relaxed, but only slightly. "Natasha Romanov?" The woman gave a slight nod, her lips curling faintly in approval.

Em let out a deep sigh, "Please tell me you have a recommendation for a better alarm system." The spy actually smiled, then opened the bottle of vodka sitting on the table in front of her and poured into two shot glasses (which mystified Emily since she didn't even _own_ any shot glasses).

"It's a good system, I'm just better." Emily sat across from her, accepting a glass. They met eyes, then knocked the shots back together. Em's eyes watered slightly, but she managed to keep from gasping as it burned down her throat. Natasha watched closely, then gave a light nod of approval. She poured a second round of shots and then leaned back, "Now we can talk."

Emily laughed a little helplessly. "I never thought I'd be getting the shovel talk from Natasha Romanov." The spy's lips twisted in amusement.

"I never thought that I'd be giving this particular talk," Natasha conceded. She rolled the glass in her hands a moment, then knocked back her second shot and Em followed a moment later.

Natasha leaned forward and pinned Emily with her eyes. "The Hulk is my teammate, but I prefer not to share confined space with him. I'll fight beside him, but I don't go into the Hulk room, so we're talking here."

Em nodded slowly; there was clearly a story there and she was pretty sure that she wasn't going to hear it. That was okay. She reached for the bottle and poured one more round of shots, watching Natasha's eyes flick to the bottle and back to her. The spy was unreadable, but she could swear her shoulders relaxed a minute fraction when Em didn't ask why.

"You know about what happened today;" it wasn't really a question. Natasha nodded and sat back again, sliding the glass towards her but not drinking just yet.

"Very few people know. Eventually the media will pick up on it, but we're trying to delay that as long as we can for Bruce's sake."

Emily slowly turned the shot glass with her fingertips, thinking. "So, what happens next?"

Natasha gave a short nod of approval. "We'll monitor you for your safety. We already have been, but we'll step it up. I have a list of recommendations for your personal and home security, and Tony will provide you with a StarkPhone. We're also working on a better cover story to explain why you're at the Tower; I suspect Tony has already made your 'consulting' role official."

Em felt a little dizzy, but it was hard to tell how much of it was from the vodka. "This is more dangerous than just being the Hulk's soulmate?"

"You know a secret now; others might want to know that secret, or try to use you against us."

Em felt a little sick and did the only rational thing; she drank her shot. Natasha quirked an eyebrow but followed. Em sighed and rolled her neck on her shoulders. "What do you suggest?"

Natasha gave a slight smile, "That you take a hot shower, eat something, and get a good night's sleep. The contractors will be here tomorrow to upgrade your systems and deliver the phone. You're part of the family now, anything involving the Avengers is complicated. You get used to it."

Her smile was impish and Em laughed in return, "I'll take that advice, thank you." She stood, only a little wobbly, and reminded herself to drink a glass of water later.

Natasha neatly tucked the shot glasses into her shoulder bag and collected the bottle of vodka, "I think we'll get along just fine." She gave a small smile as Em walked her to the front door. "By the way, I really like the decor."

Emily grinned, she couldn't help it. "Thank you, Natasha. It was good to meet you, too." Natasha moved quickly down the stairs, then turned and gave a small wave before moving off. Em firmly closed and locked the door, then stood in her empty hallway a moment.

"If anyone else is in here, please let me know now because I want to take a shower." There was no answer and she laughed at herself, then headed up the stairs to her bedroom.

Life was getting  _really_ weird.


	7. Spring Thaw

Over the next week Em did some digging on Dr. Bruce Banner. Now that she knew what to look for she was able to fill in some of the blanks in his story, and what  _wasn't_ available was suggestive. The parts he'd left out about the military... she tried not to speculate too much, but she had a feeling it wasn't good.

She nervously tapped her paper cup while she waited; she'd been a little early but was worried that he might not show. The door to the private elevator opened and Bruce stepped out, smiling when he saw her. Em relaxed and smiled back. He walked up to the counter where a croissant and cup of tea were ready for him and came straight to the table.

"I'm sorry, something came up that I had to take care of."

"It's no problem- you didn't need to rush for me. Jarvis can always let me know if you'll be late."

He smiled and gave a little half-shrug as he took a bite of croissant. Bruce seemed more relaxed than she'd seen him so far, and she used the lull in conversation to look at him more closely. His salt-and-pepper hair was a bit long, the curls unruly, and he apparently hadn't shaved that morning, but she liked the lines around his mouth and eyes; she had a feeling he didn't smile much, and realized she'd probably seen Hulk smile more often than she had Bruce. Now that she knew the similarity was obvious; it amazed her that she hadn't seen it sooner. He glanced up over his glasses and gave a wry smile, "Comparing features?"

Em coughed and blushed, embarrassed to be caught out. "Yes, I guess it's a pretty common reaction."

The fact that she didn't deny it seemed to please him. "I have a confession to make..." Emily felt a little nervous, she wasn't sure she was ready for any more surprises.

"...I didn't look over the studies you brought until last week." He looked faintly ashamed of himself. "They're very interesting, and now I have a better understanding of the exercises you've been doing with him."

She smiled, "That's all right. Thank you for looking at them."

Bruce shifted in his seat a little. "Honestly, you know him better than I do. In fact, just about anyone does." He looked away a moment, his face grim. "For a long time all I knew was the consequences of his actions."

Em sipped her tea; there were so many questions she wanted to ask and she bit down on them, one by one, until she found something safe. "Has anyone talked to him since last week?"

He shook his head, "No Hulk-level emergencies." Bruce was fidgeting, tearing what was left of his croissant into smaller and smaller pieces. He abruptly realized what he was doing and gave her a guilty look, like she'd caught one of her students eating candy in class and she had to hide her smile.

"I should maybe apologize."

Bruce blinked, "For what?"

"I've been thinking it over; Hulk changed because I mentioned I hadn't talked to you in a few weeks."

Bruce cleared his throat a little, "Yeah, I watched the tape." He didn't admit how many times he watched it. "I'm more at fault for that than you are."

Em was staring intently at her hands on the table. "Bruce, were you avoiding me?" He seemed to hunch in on himself and she immediately regretted the question.

"A little, yes," he sighed. Em frowned, he looked so  _tired._ She reached out and gently touched the back of his hand. Bruce looked up in surprise as she carefully drew her hand back.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me."

"I, I will. Soon. Just- not yet?" Em smiled and nodded and he relaxed somewhat. Both their phones chimed and they looked at each other, then laughed. "Let's go up- Thor is waiting for us."

Em smiled and shouldered her bag, "I'm looking forward to meeting him."

"Hulk and Thor can get a little... rowdy."

Em chuckled, "Then I'm  _really_ looking forward to this." Bruce grinned; it wasn't the easy smile from earlier, but it was close enough.

***

When the elevator arrived Em's jaw dropped; blocking the doorway was the largest person she'd ever seen. She'd been impressed by Steve's height and broad shoulders, but Thor was one size larger in every direction. He beamed and startled her by swooping down and catching her hand to place a kiss on the back of her wrist.

"Lady Emily! Pleased am I to meet the soulmate of my sword-brother!" 

"That means hello," a female voice quipped from behind him, followed by the 'pop!' of bubble gum. Thor stepped aside, revealing not one but  _two_ women and Em caught Bruce smothering a laugh.

"I'm pleased to meet you as well, er, Lord Thor?" He immediately beamed again, and Em had the impression that 'delight' was his default setting; he was truly larger-than-life.

"Please, let me introduce my affianced, Lady Jane, and her shield-sister, the Lady Darcy." A delicate woman with auburn hair a shade lighter than Em's held out her hand, "Dr. Jane Foster," they shook, "and this is my assistant, Darcy Lewis." 

Darcy gave a lazy but not-unfriendly wave and popped her gum again, "Hey!"

Bruce was about to say something when Jarvis interrupted them, "I apologize, but there is an Avengers call to assemble." Thor and Bruce glanced at each other as the elevator doors reopened.

Thor quickly swept Jane into a kiss that made Em blush and Darcy roll her eyes. Bruce apologized, "We'll reschedule, there's no way to know how long this will take." She nodded, but couldn't keep the concern from her face. Bruce hesitated a moment, then gently squeezed her shoulder. "Jarvis will keep you up-to-date."

Darcy called, "Go get 'em!" and mock-punched the air a few times just as the doors closed and Thor grinned; Bruce wasn't smiling.

The three women stood in the hallway blankly for a moment.

"Okay! Well, I'm streaming Buffy and making popcorn if anyone wants to join me," Darcy announced and sauntered down the hallway.

Jane stared at the elevator a moment longer, hands clasped together, and gave a forlorn little sigh; Em felt for her.

"Is it always like this?"

Jane collected herself and gave a pained smile, "Yes, it always is." She shuffled for a moment, "Are you going to leave?"

Emily felt a twinge, "I'd like to stay a while, if that's alright with you."

Jane immediately brightened, "Please do! I can show you my lab; I work in astrophysics." They walked down the hallway, trying to relax as they exchanged worried looks.

***

Bruce was exhausted, and for once it wasn't because of spending time as the Hulk.

Earlier that day there had been a probe against Stark Industries systems by an outside hacker. These probes happened fairly often, but this one was more skilled than most. With JARVIS' defenses it hadn't been serious, but it had kept Bruce and Tony busy for a while.

The same hacker had launched their full attack a couple hours later. Since JARVIS was practically impregnable, the hacker had gone after the subway systems instead. There was a manifesto and a horde of drones with some nasty little tricks involved. Tony, JARVIS, Bruce and Natasha had worked on the coding side of things while Steve, Thor, and Clint dealt with the drones. After the first lightning strike the drones spread out and were tougher targets; they weren't hardened at all, but they were small and fast. Clint had a ball, excitedly announcing his kill-count over the shared channel until even Thor was fed up (Clint accused him of sour grapes since he was behind Clint's count by 12).

They finally routed the kid out from an abandoned switching-station, and she really was a kid. Phil had cuffed and hauled her off, much to Tony's annoyance. He lightly bounced one of the salvaged drones on his palm.

"Kid's only 13, she has a bright future if SHIELD ever lets her go."

"You would hire such a mischief-maker, friend Tony?" Thor asked soberly; he had been disturbed by the age of the 'miscreant'.

"In a heartbeat. Kid's smart- see these parts? 3D printed; she took a drone design and customized it herself. For all the nuisance factor there was no real damage or threat, but she clearly has the skill to  _make_ them serious if she wanted. I'm guessing a rich kid with too much time on her hands and not enough attention at home."

Steve smirked, "Oh? Is this something that little Tony Stark would have done?"

Tony sneered, " _I_ would have programmed the trains to trace my signature and blasted AC/DC over the sound system."

Natasha rolled her eyes from the co-pilot's seat, "And that's why we have a contingency plan in case Tony ever becomes a supervillain."

Bruce looked up from polishing his glasses, "You do? Really?"

Tony snorted, "Of course they do, but it doesn't matter. If I ever went full-bore evil, there's not much SHIELD could do." Thankfully, they set down on the helipad and Tony was distracted from his grand dastardly plans.

They filed into the main lounge and found Jane, Darcy, Pepper and Emily sitting around the dining table, eating. Bruce was surprised that Em had stayed, and he watched her worried eyes scanning the group for injuries until she found Bruce and visibly relaxed, smiling. Bruce smiled in return; it was nice to have someone waiting for him, worried, and happy to see him. Not that the team didn't do that for each other, but this warm feeling was something different... something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Pepper firmly steered Tony into a chair when he tried to head to the workshop, "But I want to check the calibration on these parts, I think..."

"NO Tony, you can play with your new toys _after_ you eat some dinner."

Jane flew to Thor and he engulfed her in a hug and a kiss that everyone politely ignored. Darcy and Clint sniped at each other and she stuck her tongue out when he tousled her hair. Natasha went to the kitchen and came back with a stack of bowls and the team quickly served themselves from the pot of chicken linguine. Em started to get up to leave.

"Do you have to go?" Steve looked disappointed.

"I thought you might want some time..."

Steve quickly looked a question to Bruce and Tony grinned as he chewed, watching this play out.

"You don't have to go," Bruce offered, "...we'd like if you stayed."

Steve smiled hopefully at Em and she sank back down into the chair. "If you're sure..."

She didn't say much, listening as the team filled in the others on what had happened. Bruce was across the table and one seat down and he found himself watching her. She was clearly unhappy when she learned the perpetrator was a minor.

"What will they do?"

"Contact the parents, if there are any. Offer to not press charges if they enroll her in the SHIELD Institute and offer her a job when she graduates," Natasha supplied, helping herself to seconds. "Don't worry, Phil will take care of her, he's good with kids."

Tony rolled his eyes at this and muttered, "...his name is  _Agent_..." but he was largely ignored.

As dinner wound down the group started to break up, some to take showers and Tony to fabricate his own custom parts for the drone. Em also stood to go, talking quietly to Pepper and Jane. "Thanks for having me for dinner."

"Any time!" Pepper smiled. "It was nice to meet you. And I'd like to hear more when you and Steve have worked out the details for the school-partnership."

"Oh? What's that?" Bruce drifted over.

"My academy has a sister-school in Brooklyn. We plan joint events, fundraisers, that sort of thing," Em explained.

"Since it's in my old neighborhood, I thought maybe I could get involved in their next fundraiser; the school needs a new roof and that's pretty expensive."

"I'm sure Stark Industries would be interested in providing matching funds for such a worthwhile project," Pepper promised.

"Hey, Emmie!" Emily winced, it hadn't taken Tony long to figure out her least-favorite nickname. "Take the elevator to the garage, Happy will drive you home."

Em looked confused a moment, "Happy?"

Pepper laughed, "Our driver. Please take it, it's getting late on a school night."

Em looked rueful, "Since you put it that way..."

Bruce smiled, "I'll walk you down."

They stepped into the elevator and Em asked, "Should I reschedule or just wait until next week?" Bruce felt strangely disappointed... that's right, she wasn't here for him; she was here for the Hulk.

"Whichever you prefer."

Em looked at Bruce; his mood had suddenly shifted, and he was deliberately not looking at her. What had she said?

"If it's okay, I'll wait until next Monday; we have a school holiday so I thought it would be a good day to meet with Steve and Pepper, and Thor said he'll still be around so he'll visit during Hulk time." She paused but he just shrugged. "If you don't mind me hanging around the Tower all day, maybe we could have lunch?"

Bruce looked up in surprise and smiled as they arrived at the garage. "I'd like that." Em smiled back, whatever the mood had been it was gone now.

Happy was waiting in front of a huge black SUV and offered her the back seat. She and Bruce exchanged 'good night', and Bruce hummed to himself and he watched them pull away; he was oddly optimistic and wandered up to his lab to get some work done.


	8. Cats and Bags

It didn't take long for Tony to catch onto Bruce's lunch plans. He sauntered into the lab and rolled a stool to where Bruce was working. The physicist glanced over the rim of his glasses waiting for the opening salvo, but Tony merely planted his elbows on the table and rested his chin on his fists, radiating glee and waggling his eyebrows suggestively. Bruce huffed in mock annoyance, but couldn't quite hide a small smile.

"Soooo... where ya goin' for luuuuuunch?"

Bruce turned back to work, trying to act nonchalant and not feed the beast that is Tony's ego. "I haven't decided yet. Probably not here or else we'll end up eating with Steve. And maybe Clint. And you." He gave Tony a warning look that was completely ignored.

"You know, there's like, eleventy-billion places to eat right outside the door. Heck, I even own a few them. What does she like?"

Bruce's hands stuttered to a halt and his eyes widened. Where _should_ they go to eat? Did she like Indian food? What if she was allergic to shellfish or something? Should they even go to a restaurant? Maybe just get something from the taco truck and eat in the park? What if the weather was bad?

Tony waited long enough for the panic to settle in, then slid a printout under Bruce's nose. "Everyplace she's paid to eat at in the last six months; looks like she really likes Thai food. You could go to that little mom-and-pop place two blocks down."

Bruce sputtered in shock, "Tony, that's..."

"Brilliant? Perceptive? So-very-helpful?" Tony offered smugly, but his face quickly fell as Bruce continued:

"...an invasion of privacy! You can't just hack someone's credit card to stalk them!"

Tony rolled his eyes and sighed, then muttered under his breath, "...it worked on Pepper..."

" _Tony!"_

"Okay! Okay. What a grouch. I'll incinerate this. But I'm telling you,  _Thai food_." He stomped petulantly out of the lab, but Bruce was mildly grateful even if he didn't approve of Tony's methods; at least now he had a plan.

***

Three days later, the team was huddled in the quinjet, looking at a giant, tentacled  _thing_ that had crawled out of the harbor.

Tony groaned, "Where the hell is Namor when you need him? I thought he was supposed to handle this stuff, or at least give us a warning. Is every other super in town on vacation except us?"

Bruce was already stripping out of his clothes, "It's not natural... too many tentacles, maybe another growth ray gone amuck. Let's move fast- we're lucky everyone's at work right now. If it was lunch time that park would have been full of people."

From behind him, Clint glanced down and his eyes widened in surprise, Natasha's eyes followed, then her hand shot out and covered Clint's mouth. What followed was a fierce argument in sign language, until Clint threw up his hands and turned away so he couldn't see her sign any more. The rest of the team were already spreading out from the 'jet, Bruce shifting into Hulk as they got down to business.

They had been fighting steadily for ten minutes before Clint drawled into the shared channel, "So, did anyone else know about Bruce's..."

" _Clint!_ " Natasha hissed into the comm, "Пусть скажет нам Себя."

"Tell us what?" Steve asked, and Natasha cursed under her breath; Steve picked up languages amazingly fast, and apparently Russian was no longer safe around him.

"Wait- did you see it? Did you see his back?" Tony sounded excited.

Natasha sighed, resigned, "Of course  _you_  knew." _  
_

"Knew what?" Steve was getting annoyed.

"I told him he'd forget to hide it eventually..." Tony gloated.

" _Stark..._ " Steve's patience had run out.

"Bruce has a new soulmark," Natasha explained.

"Hey! He's my BFF, I get to spread the gossip!"

"Is it Em? I bet it's Em- I thought there was a lot of eye-action going on at dinner the other night." Clint asked.

Steve visibly wobbled and Coulson's voice broke in on their channel. "What's going on out there? Keep your mind on the game."

"Sorry sir," Steve replied in his sternest 'Cap' voice and they focused on the monster... for ten whole seconds. Tony knew, because he was counting.

"...7, 8, 9, 10..." Steve opened a private channel to Tony.

"Is it true? Is it Em?"

"Really and truly. Or at least it will be once Brucie-boy get his head out of his butt."

"What do you mean?"

"He hasn't told her yet."

"HE HASN'T TOLD HER?!"

Captain America has truly impressive lung capacity. One of the first enhancements Tony made to the comm system (after hardening so the hardware would survive Thor's lightning) was dampeners so shouts, explosions, and Hulk-roars wouldn't overload the system or cause feedback. Nonetheless, Steve's shout was _very_ loud, and Tony flinched, then shouted a warning, "Cap! Look out!"

Steve's inattention cost him as a larger-than-most tentacle reached out and grabbed him around the shoulders as Thor finally caught up with the team.

"My apologies! My lady Jane and I were..."

"No time, Blondie, zappy-zap now, embarrassing amounts of TMI later."

"Of course!" He agreed easily, and focused lightning on the core of the tentacles. Meanwhile, Clint had tagged the limb holding Steve with an explosive arrow and he broke free. Most of the fight proceeded in silence with only short bursts of directions over the comms. Hulk managed to get in close enough to grab the base of a smaller tentacle. While they'd had no luck piercing or cutting the rubbery flesh, Hulk did succeed in ripping this one out at the root. The creature  _shrieked_ and shuddered, then exploded into action, tentacles writhing in fury. Just then a green beam of light shot down from a nearby rooftop and the creature began to retract, shrinking in size.

"Yay! Natasha found the thing." Tony cheered a little breathlessly from where he was blasting his way out of a net of ever-shrinking tentacles.

The creature, now the size of a softball and looking like an angry sea anemone, was dropped in a jar for SHIELD to examine while Thor collected Natasha and the perpetrator of the growth ray.

"Oh look. Another AIM goon. Is anyone surprised? Anyone at all?" Tony started to look over the ray, just as Coulson materialized and firmly removed it from his grasp. Tony stuck out his tongue but shrugged; it really wasn't anything new or interesting.

Bruce shifted back and was careful to keep his back to the quinjet until he could get a shirt on. Tony snapped his faceplate shut and started talking quickly to Steve, who scowled since he couldn't reply without Bruce and the rest of the team hearing. Coulson dropped them off at the Tower and promised to return later for the debriefing. Bruce staggered off for a shower and bed (he'd been drenched in tentacle-juice) but the rest of the team hovered around the kitchen, Thor confused by how serious everyone was.

Steve sat at the head of the table, effectively blocking anyone else from walking past him. "Okay Tony, now  _talk_."

***

Bruce wandered toward the kitchen a few hours later. He'd managed to shower before falling into bed, but hadn't eaten and now he was starving. As he stepped off the elevator into the common room, the rest of the team sat in expectant silence while Natasha stood, waving him over. "Bruce, join us."

He blinked a few times, sensing something was off. "I was just going to get something to eat..."

Clint lifted a plate and did his best Vanna White impersonation. Bruce involuntarily took a step forward. "Is that...?"

"You favorite sandwich? Yes. Come join us!" Thor replied heartily. (Of course, Thor did  _most_ things heartily.) It worked however, and Bruce joined them. He was three bites in before he realized that no one else was eating. 

Steve leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, hands clasped. "Bruce, we wanted to talk to you for a minute."

Now all kinds of alarm bells were going off and Bruce started frantically looking for an exit. "What is this," he laughed shakily, "an intervention?"

Natasha gave him a knowing look and Bruce suddenly wasn't hungry any more. He turned to Tony who had been uncharacteristically quiet so far, but only got a 'what can you do?' shrug in response.

Steve continued, "We noticed your new soulmark before the fight today."

"Before...? Oh." Bruce's shoulders slumped and his eyes slid shut.

Natasha continued. "We just want to you know that we're your friends, your team. We won't say anything without your permission." She nudged Clint with an elbow.

"Uh, yeah. Y'know..." Clint rubbed the back his neck in embarrassment, "...that." Natasha rolled her eyes.

Thor chimed in next, his face unusually grave, "Indeed brother! Matters of the heart are not always easy to bear, but we will support you always and in all things." They hadn't had to prompt him; once Thor knew what was up there was no question that he'd say the right thing.

Everyone turned and looked at Tony, Steve scowling and Natasha making small threatening gestures. He sighed and rolled his eyes, "I just want you to be happy, you know that, but of course I'll keep your secrets,  _the way I already have been for the last couple months!_ " This last was directed indignantly to the rest of the team and Clint smothered a snort.

Now everyone was staring at Bruce and he swallowed visibly. "You know...?"

"That it's Em? Yeah, that's kinda obvious. It's not any of us and she's the only new person, so... ow!" Clint rubbed his shin while Natasha shot him a furious glare.

Bruce sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. He didn't want to deal with this, but he was relieved; he hadn't been lying to them, exactly, but he had chosen to keep them out, and they were saying that they forgave him. It meant a lot. Looking around the room, he knew that they all had gone through challenges with their soulmates.

Steve and Bucky had been platonic, but they met very young and had grown up together. Steve still felt Bucky's loss, which was only a few years ago his time.

Natasha, on the other hand, had been denied her soulmarks when they were removed by the Red Room and wiped from her memory. It wasn't well-known, but the team knew that Clint had a small soulmark on his right hip that was one word, "Nyet."

And Tony, well, Bruce knew better than most how tumultuous Tony and Pepper's relationship was. Neither of their words had appeared until several years into their working relationship, and they had nearly lost each other several times since then.

Thor's was the strangest story of all, since Asgardians did not have soulmarks. It wasn't until Thor was exiled to Midgard that Jane's words appeared, and his words appeared for her. In those few hectic days neither of them realized until Thor was gone and Jane was left alone. Thor hadn't understood why her words were there; only knew that he missed her desperately. Apparently their reunion had been... dramatic.

"I... needed some time. To get used to the idea. Things are... complicated. With us both."

Steve leaned forward, "Will you tell her?"

Bruce nodded, and some of the tension drained out of Steve's shoulders. "I plan to, I'm just not sure when. Or... how."

"Maybe at lunch?" Tony prompted eagerly.

Natasha glared at Tony this time, but he gave her a cheeky grin; he was all the way on the other side of the room. She removed a knife from... somewhere... and started cleaning her nails. Tony swallowed and hunkered down a bit.

"Maybe. Maybe... before."

Tony's head whipped around so fast his neck gave an audible 'pop'. "Really?!"

"I've... been thinking about it a lot."

Natasha nodded once, then stood up. "We'll stand by whatever you decide; just let us know." Clint trailed behind her, but gave Bruce a double thumbs-up behind her back. Natasha's arm shot out and she grabbed Clint by the ear, dragging him the rest of the way out of the room.

"If you want to talk, I'm always here." Steve added and gave an uncertain smile.

"Thanks, Steve." Bruce gave an uncertain smile in return, but Steve relaxed further and gently clapped him on the shoulder before heading out.

Thor stood and gave Bruce a rib-creaking hug that lifted him from his seat, "I think she is most worthy, my friend, and I wish you all happiness in whatsoever you choose." He grinned, then sauntered off to the kitchen.

Bruce took a shaky breath and looked at Tony who threw up his hands, "Hey! Don't look at me, it was Captain Underpants' idea."

"Should I tell her?" He looked at Tony, who looked unusually serious before he replied.

"Yeah. Do it. Don't wait. In our jobs, you never know how much time you have. And don't do it on the phone. Trust me, don't save the important stuff for the phone; that just sucks."

Bruce nodded slowly, "Thanks."

Tony shrugged it off. "De nada. Just don't forget: Thai food!" He grinned and slapped his hands on his thighs. "You need me, you know where I'll be," and wandered down to his workshop.

Bruce sat thoughtfully for a moment, "JARVIS, what is Em's address?"

 


	9. Two Left Feet

Bruce stood in front of Emily's brownstone, double-checking the address on his phone. He'd rung the doorbell twice, but there was no response. He was about to call JARVIS- it was after 4:30 so school should be over, but Bruce realized he had no idea when Em usually got home. Maybe she had after-school activities?

"If you're looking for me you can speed things up by helping me with these bags," Em grinned at him from the sidewalk and he hurried to take the cloth bags of groceries off her hands.

"I'm sorry, I should have called. I didn't think..."

Em laughed, "It's okay. I'm running a little late today." She shoved open the door and Bruce cautiously followed. The building was old but lovingly cared-for; the walls alternated warm bronze and undressed brick, and from the high ceilings spotlights framed bookshelves and children's artwork.

"Right through here." Bruce followed her voice into a kitchen not much larger than the one he had in the Tower. Em stowed the groceries with an ease of efficiency that spoke of long practice. "Take a seat while I get this started."

"Okay," Bruce perched on a wood bar chair at the island and groped for where to start. "How was school today?"

Em gave Bruce a startled look, then a shy smile and turned back to the stove where she put pasta on to boil. "Good. We had our weekly science experiment, which is always fun for the kids, but sometimes with unexpected results." She placed a wood cutting board, bread knife, and baguette in front of Bruce, "Roundels, please."

Bruce started slicing, listening to her talk. It was comforting, and reminded him of good times with Betty, or cooking with the team back at the Tower; the combination of casual purpose and companionship was still something that he cherished.

"We're doing water experiments this week, surface tension, resistance, you know, the fun stuff." She grinned over her shoulder and Bruce found himself smiling back. She slid a small plate in front of Bruce and a bowl with olive oil and seasoning in it, "Help yourself." Bruce dipped a slice of baguette and chewed while she continued.

"Several of my students are water-adverse, one especially so. Most are willing to wear rubber gloves, so they can still participate, or they are paired with another student who is not water-adverse. It works pretty well, usually. Today, however, most of the class decided that they wanted gloves- I had to raid the nurse's office. I got some great pictures; even one of my touch-adverse students was willing to try on gloves- it's a huge step."

Bruce peered at the stove, "Anything I can do to help?"

"Sure," Em quickly wiped her hands on a dish towel and handed Bruce a spoon. "Stir the cream sauce slowly so it doesn't scorch, while I start the mushrooms."

"Mushrooms?"

A box on the counter had portabella mushrooms growing from it. Em quickly snipped off a dozen caps and rinsed them. "I bought the box to do spore art when we were studying fungi. The darn thing just keeps growing, so I have mushrooms at least once a week- it's a good thing I like mushrooms," she grinned. He watched her expertly slice the caps and add them to a simmering marinade.

"So how was your day? I saw the team on the news again."

"Not bad, all things considered. It does seem like we've been in the news a lot lately, though." Bruce sighed, watching carefully as he stirred the sauce.

"Not much downtime, then?"

"No, Tony and I both have work backing up. Jane had a breakthrough, though; she's getting close. Thor is excited- we just wish he'd let us know if we're moving in the right direction or not."

"He can't help, or won't?"

"It's hard to tell... I think this is done." Em leaned in, took the spoon from Bruce and quickly tasted, then added another pinch of seasoning.

"Five more minutes- it's almost there."

Bruce picked up where he left off, "He's said the Einstein-Rosen Bridge isn't his specialty, but he won't ask anyone from Asgard to help. They have some sort of non-interference policy."

Em cocked an eyebrow, "But with Thor here..."

"Exactly," Bruce nodded. "There's some cultural influences we just don't understand. Thor doesn't call it 'politics', but that's certainly what it sounds like."

Emily drained the pasta and filled two bowls, then ladled sauce over each and added a generous helping of mushrooms. "What would you like to drink? I have a white open if it's not too early for you."

Bruce hummed, "That sounds nice." Em gathered glasses and the wine bottle, and Bruce brought the bowls over to a small wrought-iron cafe table and chairs. Em opened french doors onto a small iron balcony (really more of an glorified fire escape), that looked down on a courtyard enclosed by the buildings surrounding it. The first-floor neighbors had a small brick patio strung with white lights, and ivy crept up the walls past Emily's perch.

Bruce sat and sniffed his steaming bowl, "This smells delicious." Em handed out silverware and napkins and sat down, pouring the wine.

"Thank you! I like it because it's easy to make but looks fancy," she twinkled. Bruce laughed and took a bite, then murmured his pleasure- it tasted as good as it smelled.

"Thank you for letting me stay for dinner, I hadn't planned to intrude."

Em smiled, "It's hardly a chore, and not to downplay that you're a welcome guest, but I cook for anyone who shows up. Well, except Natasha- I'm still recovering from her visit," she chuckled ruefully.

They ate slowly, enjoying the early twilight as the sun dipped behind the building. Em waited until Bruce was mostly done with dinner and sipping wine before she asked, "So, what brought you over?"

Bruce cleared his throat and looked uncomfortable. "I... haven't been entirely open with you."

Em gave a slow, noncommittal nod and waited for him to continue. Bruce shifted in his seat, heart pounding and unconsciously ran his hands through his hair; the calm from just a few minutes ago was gone. He knew _what_ he needed to say, just not  _how_. Emily swirled the wine in the bottom of her glass, watching it thoughtfully, then took the last slip.

"What does your soulmark say?"

Bruce gasped, "Who told you?!"

Emily's face tightened, "I may not be an astrophysicist or a world-class CEO, but I'm not stupid, Bruce. I take it the others already know?"

Bruce stammered a moment, rubbing his hands over his face, "They... figured it out." 

"They're not stupid either," but Em's tone softened somewhat. Her eyes searched  his face, "Was it really that hard to tell anyone?"

He let out a long sigh and slumped in the chair, "You have no idea." Bruce looked at Emily, then reached out and tentatively took her hands. "I'm sorry. I should have... I should have done a lot of things differently. I really messed this up."

She gave a slight smile, "Yes, you did. You're lucky I like you." Bruce huffed a little, but gave a shy smile in return.

"When did you figure it out?"

"It took me a while," Em admitted, gently rubbing her thumbs over Bruce's. "That day in the cafe when you ran, it was because of the color of my soulmark. It wasn't until later when I started putting things together that I puzzled out why."

"And you didn't say anything?" Bruce sounded slightly awed.

It was Emily's turn to shrug uncomfortably, "We both had some things to work out. So... do you want to try this?"

Bruce straightened, "Yes, I really do." Em beamed at his conviction. "I know I botched this badly, and we've already had one do-over, but, I'd like to try, if you do, too."

Em gave him a sly look, "You still haven't told me what your soul mark says..."

He blushed and laughed a little,  _"Yes, well, this wasn't exactly what I expected when my second marks showed up, either."_

"Oh no! I'm so sorry!" Em laughed, the last of the tension draining away. "I hope it's not a bad place..."

"Lower back," Bruce grinned, "that's how the team caught me. I was going to tell them eventually..."

"Hopefully  _after_ you told me?" Em asked with an arch look but a teasing smile.

"You should know that Tony figured it out early on, of course."

"Of course," Em agreed. "Did he give you a hard time?"

"No more than usual," Bruce joked and Em grinned. "I'll have to let them know we talked..."

Bruce's phone buzzed and he fumbled it out in surprise; Em watched him go from surprised to annoyed to resigned in mere seconds. He turned the screen so she could read the text from Clint:

_good 4 u!_

They both laughed, shaking their heads, "Spies." "Yep."

Bruce grinned widely, and Em admired the look for a moment. "So this is our lives now?"

He gave a small shrug, "Unfortunately. You okay with that?"

"Hulk is my soulmate- I think it's too late at this point," Em replied, taking Bruce's hand with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry that it took so long to post this chapter, but we're finally done! I really agonized over how to end this story- it ran longer than I originally expected and I discarded several alternate endings. I think their first kiss may be a one-off in the future, and if so I'll make this a series. I hope that you enjoyed! Thanks for everyone's kind comments and support! (And now that I'm finally done, I have a backlogged chapter for the Ice Cream 'Verse to finish!)


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